Purañjana enters the city of the body and becomes illusioned (Srimad Bhagavatam #68)

As in most romantic stories, Purañjana took the initiative, attracted by the beauty of the girl, and, seduced in this way, she eagerly accepted him. That's the begin of his illusion.

Affected by lust, a man sees a beautiful girl as the source of satisfaction for all his desires, and similarly, a woman sees a handsome man as the source of wealth, adventure, and satisfaction. Just as it is difficult for a man to resist the beauty of a young, attractive lady, it is very difficult for a woman to resist the advances of a handsome man who tries to seduce her. This is the very basis of material conditioning. The strategy of seduction may be different for the two genders, but the attraction is similar. Because of this mutual attraction, both men and women become attracted to material life, and this keeps us forgetful of our original spiritual nature. Even experienced transcendentalists can fall when an opportunity for material enjoyment appears, as in the case of many sages seduced by apasaras described in the scriptures.

As in most romantic stories, Purañjana took the initiative, attracted by the beauty of the girl, and, seduced in this way, she eagerly accepted him.

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How we become entangled in the material world, and how to become free (chapter 4.25)

"Expert at rape"

As Purañjana courted the girl, she also became attracted to him:

"Nārada continued: My dear King, when Purañjana became so attracted and impatient to touch the girl and enjoy her, the girl also became attracted by his words and accepted his request by smiling. By this time she was certainly attracted by the King." (SB 4.25.32)

In his purport, Prabhupada explains: "By this incident we can understand that when a man is aggressive and begins to woo a woman, the woman becomes attracted to the man. This process is described in the Bhāgavatam (5.5.8) as puṁsaḥ striyā mithunī-bhāvam etam. This attraction is enacted on the platform of sexual life. Thus the sex impulse is the platform of material engagement. This conditional life, the platform of material sense enjoyment, is the cause of forgetfulness of spiritual life. In this way a living entity’s original Kṛṣṇa consciousness becomes covered or converted into material consciousness. Thus one engages in the business of sense gratification."

Affected by lust, a man sees a beautiful girl as the source of satisfaction for all his desires, and similarly, a woman sees a handsome man as the source of wealth, adventure, and satisfaction. Just as it is difficult for a man to resist the beauty of a young, attractive lady, it is very difficult for a woman to resist the advances of a handsome man who tries to seduce her. This is the very basis of material conditioning. The strategy of seduction may be different for the two genders, but the attraction is similar. Because of this mutual attraction, both men and women become attracted to material life, and this keeps us forgetful of our original spiritual nature. Even experienced transcendentalists can fall when an opportunity for material enjoyment appears, as in the case of many sages seduced by apasaras described in the scriptures.

As in most romantic stories, Purañjana took the initiative, attracted by the beauty of the girl, and, seduced in this way, she eagerly accepted him.

"O my dear hero, who in this world will not accept a husband like you? You are so famous, so magnanimous, so beautiful and so easily gotten. O mighty-armed, who in this world will not be attracted by your arms, which are just like the bodies of serpents? Actually you relieve the distress of husbandless women like us by your attractive smile and your aggressive mercy. We think that you are traveling on the surface of the earth just to benefit us only." (SB 4.25.41-42)

This leads to one of the most polemical purports of Srila Prabhupada. Taken out of context, it can sound shocking, but when we consider the context of the verses, we can understand what Prabhupada means:

"Every husband is certainly a great hero to his wife. In other words, if a woman loves a man, that man appears very beautiful and magnanimous. Unless one becomes beautiful in the eyes of another, one cannot dedicate his whole life to another. The husband is considered very magnanimous because he gives as many children to the wife as she likes. Every woman is fond of children; therefore any husband who can please his wife by sex and give her children is considered very magnanimous. Not only does the husband become magnanimous by begetting children, but by giving his wife ornaments, nice food and dresses, he keeps her completely under submission. Such a satisfied wife will never give up the company of her husband. Manu-saṁhitā recommends that to keep a wife satisfied a husband should give her some ornaments because women are generally fond of home, ornaments, dresses, children, etc. In this way the woman is the center of all material enjoyment.
In this regard, the word vikhyātam is very significant. A man is always famous for his aggression toward a beautiful woman, and such aggression is sometimes considered rape. Although rape is not legally allowed, it is a fact that a woman likes a man who is very expert at rape." (SB 4.25.41 purport)

This shows a basic principle of human psychology: a single woman will look for a man, and a single man will look for a woman. Nothing more normal than that. However, when they find a potential spouse, they act (at least traditionally) in different ways. A man will generally try to actively seduce the lady in different ways, while a woman will try to attract the attention of the man and wait for him to take the initiative. When a lady desires a man, she becomes very pleased if he gives her attention and tries to seduce her in a confident way. This is the basis of many books and movies. Many ladies fantasize about a handsome man trying to seduce them, especially by doing something heroic.

If directed at a lady who is not interested, this seduction would be considered a form of aggression. Such advances are even considered a crime in some countries. If the man insists, trying to touch the lady and so on, this could be considered rape.

We can understand that the same assertive attitude can be perceived in very different ways according to the disposition of the lady. The line between seduction and aggression can be tenuous.

We should also notice the use of the word "expert" when Prabhupada mentions, "a woman likes a man who is very expert at rape". A woman will generally be attracted by a man who knows how to seduce her and subvert her better judgment (an expert in seduction), but no woman will appreciate a clumsy beast who tries to take her by force.

One could argue about the usage of the word "rape", a word that in Western culture has a very clear meaning and is always used in a negative sense, but the point is that the meaning of words changes over time. Srila Prabhupada studied Scottish English, learning from dictionaries from the 19th century. He used English words in a traditional and classic sense, as we can observe in his purports.

An old meaning of the word rape is "to seize and carry off" (in other words, to steal, or to take possession of something). Understanding the situation (a man making advances over a willing woman, winning her heart, and taking her hand) it becomes clear that Prabhupada is not using the word "rape" in the modern sense, but to describe the process of assertive seduction that is the basis of the love affairs between men and women.

Yet another point is that in Indian law, cases of a man seducing a lady with false promises to have sex with her out of marriage would often be treated as rape, even though consensual. This changed only recently, with the Indian criminal-law overhaul of 2023. It seems that this is what Prabhupada refers to when he mentions that "such aggression is sometimes considered rape. Although rape is not legally allowed, it is a fact that a woman likes a man who is very expert at rape."

If the word "rape" is taken in the contemporaneous meaning, the sentence makes no sense, since rape is always illegal, but in this context of Indian law, the "rape" is consensual, and therefore it may be treated as a crime or not, depending on the interpretation of the judge. This brings to the situation described by Prabhupada, where a Don Juan who has consensual affairs with different ladies could still be charged with rape.

Seduction from the part of a man is almost always aggressive in nature, in the sense that it is active, based on practical actions to impress and win the heart of a woman. Handsome men who are expert in the art of seduction are not only desired and appreciated by ladies, but also glorified in books and movies, and that's what Prabhupada refers to when he mentions that "A man is always famous for his aggression toward a beautiful woman."

When all this information is kept in mind, the meaning becomes clear.

Description of family life

In the allegory, Purañjana becoming attracted to the woman representing material intelligence represents the living entity becoming attracted by the possibilities of sense gratification offered by it. Prabhupada explains it perfectly in his purport to text 36:

"The living entity comes down into this material world for sense gratification, and his intelligence, represented by the woman, gives him the proper direction by which he can satisfy his senses to their best capacity. In actuality, however, intelligence comes from the Supersoul, or the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and He gives full facility to the living entity who has come down to this material world."

Often, it is tough that the soul may fall from the spiritual world directly to this material world, but this is an incorrect idea. There is no influence of the material energy in the spiritual world, and thus no possibility of a soul becoming attracted to material enjoyment there. However, if the soul, due to free will, becomes somehow averse to the service of Krsna, one is removed from this spiritual atmosphere and is eventually placed in a borderline position in the causal ocean. From there, without access to spiritual bliss, one can become attracted to the glitter of the material creation, and thus come here in search of material enjoyment, as described by Prabhupada.

When this happens, the soul receives the material intelligence as a tool to satisfy his material desires, and hopefully, eventually comes to understand the shortcomings of material enjoyment and search for spiritual knowledge. The intelligence is given to us by the Supersoul, and when we start inquiring about transcendental knowledge, it is also the Supersoul who gives us spiritual realization. In this way, the Supersoul slowly guides us back to our original position.

"O killer of the enemy, you have somehow or other come here. This is certainly great fortune for me. I wish all auspicious things for you. You have a great desire to satisfy your senses, and all my friends and I shall try our best in all respects to fulfill your desires. My dear lord, I have just arranged this city of nine gates for you so that you can have all kinds of sense gratification. You may live here for one hundred years, and everything for your sense gratification will be supplied." (SB 4.25.36-37)

The intelligence guides the mind, which in turn controls the senses, giving the living entity the possibility of enjoying this world. However, even though the body is put at our disposal, the body is still Krsna's property and should be used in His service. The human body is given to us as an opportunity to develop our Krsna Consciousness, or at least lead a pious life according to the prescriptions of the scriptures. If instead we just use it for our own purposes, we have to deal with the karmic reactions, as also illustrated later in the allegory of Purañjana.

Apart from the description of the relationship of the soul and the intelligence, the allegory also describes one's external actions, acting in the material world. From text 4.25.38 to 4.25.40, the girl offers arguments to Purañjana in favor of family life:

"How can I expect to unite with others, who are neither conversant about sex nor capable of knowing how to enjoy life while living or after death? Such foolish persons are like animals because they do not know the process of sense enjoyment in this life and after death.
The woman continued: In this material world, a householder’s life brings all kinds of happiness in religion, economic development, sense gratification and the begetting of children, sons and grandsons. After that, one may desire liberation as well as material reputation. The householder can appreciate the results of sacrifices, which enable him to gain promotion to superior planetary systems. All this material happiness is practically unknown to the transcendentalists. They cannot even imagine such happiness. According to authorities, the householder life is pleasing not only to oneself but to all the forefathers, demigods, great sages, saintly persons and everyone else. A householder life is thus beneficial." (SB 4.25.38-40)

We may think that these instructions are just untruths to convince Purañjana to get involved with her, but there are no untruths in Srimad Bhagavatam; all verses are significant. Even when great demons such as Kaṁsa or Hiraṇyakaśipu speak, they reveal some important truth.

Although from the point of a self-realized soul, marriage may be frowned upon, for someone in a lower spiritual status, marriage is a progression, because it can help one to get out of sinful life. As long as one is sinful, there is no question of properly advancing on the spiritual path. Karmis often use family life as simply a concession for material enjoyment, but even that is better than a promiscuous life. As Prabhupada explains in his purport to text 39:

"Pravṛtti-mārga maintains that even though one has the propensity for sense gratification, he can gratify his senses according to the directions of the Vedic injunctions. For example, everyone has the propensity for sex life, but in demoniac civilization sex is enjoyed without restriction. According to Vedic culture, sex is enjoyed under Vedic instructions. Thus the Vedas give direction to civilized human beings to enable them to satisfy their propensities for sense gratification."

When we come to devotional life, marriage can fulfill its purpose in offering a foundation for one's spiritual practice. A successful marriage isn't in itself the goal of life, but it can be a step in this direction, allowing one to practice in a safer environment, partially protected from the onslaught of illicit material desires, and gradually progress to a platform of genuine renunciation.

In his purports in this section, Prabhupada draws a clear distinction between the gṛhastha, who uses his family life as a foundation to his spiritual life, and the gṛhamedhi, who becomes blinded by material enjoyment. This is a path that must be avoided, as he explains in text 39:

"Although the gṛhastha desires sense gratification, he acts according to Vedic instructions. The gṛhamedhī, however, who is interested only in sense gratification, does not follow any Vedic instruction. The gṛhamedhī engages himself as an advocate of sex life and also allows his sons and daughters to engage in sex and to be deprived of any glorious end in life. A gṛhastha enjoys sex life in this life as well as in the next, but a gṛhamedhī does not know what the next life is about because he is simply interested in sex in this life. On the whole, when one is too much inclined toward sex, he does not care for the transcendental spiritual life."

Family life brings many obligations to the family, demigods, ancestors, etc., but the supreme duty for everyone is to surrender to the Lord and worship Him in devotional service. One who can fulfill this highest dharma, taking shelter in the Lotus feet of the Lord, becomes free of other obligations.

Entering the city of material enjoyment

After these exchanges, Purañjana and the lady became firmly united, and together they entered the city and there enjoyed life for one hundred years:

"The great sage Nārada continued: My dear King, those two — the man and the woman — supporting one another through mutual understanding, entered that city and enjoyed life for one hundred years. Many professional singers used to sing about the glories of King Purañjana and his glorious activities. When it was too hot in the summer, he used to enter a reservoir of water. He would surround himself with many women and enjoy their company." (SB 4.25.43-44)

Even though the life expectancy of different human species all over the cosmos is radically different, going from 311.04 trillion years in the case of Brahma, to just 100 years in our planet in the current age, the perception of time for everyone is similar, with a lifetime being perceived as a period of 100 years. During this period, one is born, grows, forms a family, generates descendants, becomes old, and dies. At the end, we take with us only what we learned, and the results of our activities.

The main trap of material existence is unregulated sexual enjoyment, for it leads to all other kinds of bad habits, which lead one to degradation. In the allegory, Purañjana went on this path, and the result is that he was dragged to hell at the end of his life, and from there to a new material body.

Sexual life can be regulated in two ways: by complete abstinence and by married life, where one is restricted to just one wife or husband. Married life is also a form of abstinence, because it controls one's tendency to go to multiple partners and thus become more and more entangled. Family life, however, is not a solution in itself; it must be combined with spiritual practice and transcendental knowledge.

As Prabhupada explains: "A living entity is never satisfied with a woman unless he is trained in the system of brahmacarya. Generally a man’s tendency is to enjoy many women, and even at the very end of life the sex impulse is so strong that even though one is very old he still wants to enjoy the company of young girls. Thus because of the strong sex impulse the living entity becomes more and more involved in this material world."

This sentence applies to both men and women, because in material life, both see themselves as the "male", the enjoyer, who wants to enjoy the opposite gender, the "woman". This propensity to enjoy continues even in old age, with men dreaming bout getting involved with some young girl, and women dreaming about recovering their youthful appearance and attracting the attention of some handsome man.

Starting from text 4.25.45, the allegory gives more detail of the life of enjoyment of Purañjana, from the perspective of the soul inside the body:

a) The city of the body has nine gates, seven in the surface (eyes, nostrils, ears, and mouth) and two subterranean (rectum and the genital) through which the living entity contacts the external world and enjoys different types of sense pleasures.

b) Of the nine doors, five led toward the eastern side. These are the eyes, nostrils, and mouth. It is said they face the east because they face the sun, which appears on the eastern side. The two ears are the doors facing the north and south, and the rectum and genital are the gates facing the western side.

c) The two eyes are called Khadyotā and Āvirmukhī, and passing through these two gates, Purañjana used to go to the city of Vibhrājita, accompanied by a friend whose name was Dyumān (the sun). The name Vibhrājita indicates something that is made brilliant by an external force. All material objects are dark in nature, but they become brilliant when illuminated by the sun. Khadyotā and Āvirmukhī mean "glowworm" and "torchlight" because they are not only unequal (one eye sees better than the other) but also limited in their capacity to see, being dependent on the sun and other sources of light. One who depends only on the eyes to see will have a patchy picture of reality. To see properly, one requires the spiritual light of higher knowledge.

d) The two nostrils are called Nalinī and Nālinī, and through them, accompanied by Avadhūta (air), Purañjana used to go to the city of Saurabha (aroma). Nalinī (lotus) and Nālinī (tube) indicate the two functions of the nostrils, serving both as tubes for inhaling and exhaling, and also to smell aromas.

e) The mouth is called Mukhyā (the chief), and through this gate the king would go to Bahūdana and Āpaṇa, accompanied by Rasajña and Vipaṇa. The mouth is called the chief because it is used both to eat and to speak. Eating is not just the most essential activity for maintaining the body, but it is also one one the greatest sources of pleasure for the conditioned soul, while the capacity of speaking is used to conduct all kinds of social interactions, work, commerce, etc. Bahūdana means "abundance of food" and Āpaṇa means "marketplace", illustrating the social interactions related to the voice. Rasajña means "minister of taste", the friend who coordinates the first function (eating), while Vipaṇa means "trader" and is connected with the second function (speaking).

Although in materialistic life, eating and speaking about mundane subjects are more prominent, the tongue can also be used to speak about spiritual knowledge, which can liberate us from material captivity. Unfortunately, Purañjana was not very diligent in this direction.

f) The right ear (the southern gate of the city), called Pitṛhū, is distinguished from the left. Through this gate, the king used to visit Dakṣiṇa-pañcāla, accompanied by Śrutadhara. The significance is that the right ear is used for fruitive activities, with the goal of gaining elevation to Ptṛloka or the celestial planets, while the left is used to hear spiritual knowledge. The friend, Śrutadhara, means memory, which stores instructions and rules for the practice of rituals, and Dakṣiṇa-pañcāla means the injunctions of the scriptures for fruitive performances and regulated enjoyment. In other words, Purañjana would use the right ear to hear about fruitive performances and practice them with the help of his memory. These ritualistic performances, however, were not sufficient to save him from a new birth.

g) The left ear (the gate on the northern side) is called Devahū. Through this passage, Purañjana used to go with the same Śrutadhara (memory) to Uttara-pañcāla.

Devahū means "the one who calls the devas", because this is the ear used to receive initiation and receive spiritual knowledge. This higher knowledge is stored in the memory, and using it, the soul can go to Uttara-pañcāla (the Northern Pañcāla, in the sense that the soul goes upwards, to Maharloka, Tapoloka, and Brahmaloka, or directly to the transcendental world). As Prabhupada explains, the right ear is always eager to hear about sense gratification, which culminates with elevation to the celestial planets, but if one can resist this push and instead use the left ear to receive transcendental knowledge, one can attain a permanent position in the spiritual sky.

h) The genital (the gate on the western side) is called Āsurī, because it is especially destined for the asuras, who become overly attracted to sex life, and thus degrade themselves. Through this gate, Purañjana used to go to the city of Grāmaka (gross sense gratification), accompanied by his friend Durmada (sinful madness). In the Gītā, Krsna mentions that He is the sex life, which is not contrary to religious principles. Sex life has its purpose, but when one becomes too attracted to it, one becomes insane, and this insanity leads to the performance of acts that are progressively more sinful, often going to an extreme of depravity. In this way, one degrades his consciousness and becomes more and more burdened with sinful reactions, creating a dark path of suffering for the future.

i) The last gate is the rectum, described as Nirṛti (the painful gate). Purañjana used to go through this gate accompanied by his friend Lubdhaka (greed). This greed manifests in the form of eating more than necessary. This gluttony leads to Vaiśasa (pain) while evacuating. Another meaning is that the rectum is the gate of the body through which the sinful soul leaves the body, escorted by the Yamadūtas. It is thus the gate of pain in both senses.

j) Out of all the inhabitants of the city, Purañjana used to spend most of his time associating with two blind men, called Nirvāk and Peśaskṛt. These are the hands and legs that are blind and mute. This means he was absorbed in performing different material activities with his limbs, instead of using his time to cultivate spiritual knowledge. The human body offers all the facilities for cultivating spiritual knowledge, but if we spend all our time running here and there, we miss the opportunity.

k) Sometimes he used to go to his private home with Viṣūcīna (the mind), one of the chief servants of the intelligence. Viṣūcīna means "going in every direction", which is a graphic description of the mind, which is so restless. The mind paints all sensory experiences with illusion, making them appear desirable or undesirable, and makes us enjoy or suffer through many different feelings and emotions originating from contact with the three material modes. As long as we are engaged in material life, we remain under the mental weather created by the workings of the mind. Unless we engage Viṣūcīna in the names, form, pastimes, etc. of Krsna, we remain captive of the dictations of the mind.

As Prabhupada explains in his purport to text 55: "When the living entity is encircled by wife, children and home, he acts on the mental plane. Sometimes he is very happy, sometimes he is very much satisfied, sometimes he is not satisfied, and sometimes he is bewildered. Bewilderment is called moha, illusion. Illusioned by society, friendship and love, the living entity thinks that his so-called society, friendship and love, nationality, community, etc., will give him protection. He does not know that after death he will be thrown into the hands of a very strong material nature that will force him to accept a certain type of body according to his present work. This body may not even be a human body. Thus the living entity’s feeling of security in this life in the midst of society, wife and friendship is nothing but illusion. All living entities encaged in various material bodies are illusioned by the present activities of material enjoyment. They forget their real business, which is to go back home, back to Godhead."

Living in illusion

Every human body offers the same facilities described here, both for sense gratification and for self-realization. Purañjana, however, used only the facilities for sense gratification and fruitive activities, and thus, as time passed, he became more and more illusioned, forgetting his real self. The more we surrender ourselves to sense gratification, the more we become entangled in illusion, material suffering, and agitation.

"Being thus entangled in different types of mental concoction and engaged in fruitive activities, King Purañjana came completely under the control of material intelligence and was thus cheated. Indeed, he used to fulfill all the desires of his wife, the Queen." (SB 4.25.56)

The material intelligence can work properly only when purified by spiritual knowledge. Otherwise, it just creates unlimited plans for enjoying matter, and we end up becoming helplessly entangled in them, just like Purañjana. Similarly, we need to find ways to keep our wife, husband, and children Krsna Conscious, since if they become too materialistic, they will also make our practice of Krsna Consciousness difficult.

In his purport to this verse, Prabhupada calls our attention to this point, explaining that if one wants to have a harmonious family life, one has to keep one's wife or husband satisfied in all aspects, otherwise there is quarrel, divorce, or separation. Maintaining a materialistic wife or husband satisfied, however, requires us to give up our Krsna Consciousness, or at least slacken our practice. Therefore, as Prabhupada explains in other purports, the only solution is to make our family Krsna-conscious.

In this way, in conditioned life we are not only controlled externally by other people because of material attachment, but also controlled internally by our material intelligence, teaming with the mind. We thus completely lose our independence, becoming helpless servants of the dictates of the mind and intelligence. This helpless condition of the conditioned soul is described in verses 57 to 61:

"When the Queen drank liquor, King Purañjana also engaged in drinking. When the Queen dined, he used to dine with her, and when she chewed, King Purañjana used to chew along with her. When the Queen sang, he also sang. Similarly, when the Queen cried, he also cried, and when the Queen laughed, he also laughed. When the Queen talked loosely, he also talked loosely, and when the Queen walked, the King walked behind her. When the Queen would stand still, the King would also stand still, and when the Queen would lie down in bed, he would also follow and lie down with her. When the Queen sat, he would also sit, and when the Queen heard something, he would follow her to hear the same thing. When the Queen saw something, the King would also look at it, and when the Queen smelled something, the King would follow her to smell the same thing. When the Queen touched something, the King would also touch it, and when the dear Queen was lamenting, the poor King also had to follow her in lamentation. In the same way, when the Queen felt enjoyment, he also enjoyed, and when the Queen was satisfied, the King also felt satisfaction." (SB 4.25.57-61)

In his purport, Prabhupada explains: "The mind is the place where the self is situated, and the mind is conducted by the intelligence. The living entity, situated within the heart, follows the intelligence. The intelligence is herein depicted as the Queen, and the soul, under mental control, follows the material intelligence just as the King follows his wife. The conclusion is that material intelligence is the cause of bondage for the living entity. The point is that one has to take to spiritual intelligence to come out of this entanglement."

Taking to spiritual intelligence means following the precepts of the scriptures and the instructions of the spiritual master. By doing so, we become gradually purified, awakening our original spiritual nature.

This process was followed perfectly by Ambarīṣa Mahārāja, as Prabhupada describes in the same purport: "In the life of Mahārāja Ambarīṣa, we find that the great Mahārāja first engaged his mind on the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. In this way his intelligence became purified. Mahārāja Ambarīṣa also used his other senses in the service of the Lord. He engaged his eyes in seeing the Deity in the temple nicely decorated with flowers. He engaged his sense of smell by smelling the flowers, and he engaged his legs by walking to the temple. His hands were engaged in cleansing the temple, and his ears were engaged in hearing about Kṛṣṇa. His tongue was engaged in two ways: in speaking about Kṛṣṇa and in tasting prasāda offered to the Deity."

As Prabhupada mentioned in his purport to text 4.25.25, every living entity has the freedom to be attracted by material nature or to stand as a hero and resist that attraction. Purañjana surrendered to the first option, becoming attracted to an easy life of sense gratification. In this way, he lost the opportunity of human life and was cheated in all his endeavors:

"In this way, King Purañjana was captivated by his nice wife and was thus cheated. Indeed, he became cheated in his whole existence in the material world. Even against that poor foolish King’s desire, he remained under the control of his wife, just like a pet animal that dances according to the order of its master." (SB 4.25.62)

In his purport, Prabhupada mentions: "Just as a pet monkey dances according to the desires of its master, the King danced according to the desires of the Queen. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (5.5.2) it is said, mahat-sevāṁ dvāram āhur vimukteḥ: if one associates with a saintly person, a devotee, one’s path of liberation becomes clear. But if one associates with a woman or with a person who is too much addicted to a woman, his path of bondage becomes completely clear."

In this context, the word "woman" is used in the sense of a materialistic person addicted to sense gratification. Once, in India, Prabhupada received a group of Mayavadi sannyāsīs, who refused to accept prasāda because it was served by a lady disciple, Yamunā Devi. Prabhupada chastised them by saying that if they associated with her, they would be purified. This makes the point that a lady who becomes a Vaiṣṇavī, controlling her senses and being engaged in devotional service, is not included in this category.

In this way, men who aspire to be serious Vaishnavas should be careful not to fall under the control of materialistic women, and similarly, ladies who are serious in spiritual practice need to be careful not to be seduced by materialistic men. Apart from that, both should be careful in associating with materialistic people in general.

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